Page 79 of Trigger Happy Ending

As if on cue, a bolt strikes what appears to be the exact same fucking spot as earlier. Go figure. She tilts her head at me and cocks an eyebrow. “See?”

“Okay, well, it’s still overkill to light dozens of candles.”

I grab my bowl of Cheetos and wander over to the glass windows. Lightning stabs the skyline every few seconds as rain begins to lash at the windows. In the reflection, I can see she’s got candles everywhere—the bench, the coffee table, every fucking flat surface.

I place my bowl of snacks on the coffee table and drop onto the lounge, flicking aimlessly through the channels.

After lighting what seems to be the hundredth candle, Raine sits down next to me, tucking her legs under herself. Her thigh accidentally brushes mine, but she doesn’t move it. The scent of her shampoo slips into my head and stays there. Ten minutes of comfortable quiet pass, just sport highlights and the low rumble outside.

“You want a glass of wine?”

I nod. Sure, why not. Hopefully, a glass of wine will help her fucking relax too.

Raine heads for the kitchen, my eyes tracking her ass in a pair of skintight yoga pants as she strolls across the room. I try not to think about her in anything less as she bends over to slide a bottle of wine out from the small bar fridge.

A loud, ear-splitting crack slices through the air, followed by an earth-shattering boom.

The lights and television snap off. Great. Power’s out.

Raine rushes back, bottle in hand, and curls into the couch.

“Lucky you lit a hundred fucken candles,” I say, gesturing for Raine to pass me the wine bottle from her hands. “Glasses, or are you drinking from the bottle?”

She hesitates, considers it, before handing the bottle over.

I fetch two glasses from the cupboard before sitting back on the couch. We clink glasses in flickering candlelight as the storm presses in.

“What do you think will happen in Miami?” Raine asks.

“I think this is what we’ve been waiting for. Carson hinted at something big, something new. O seems to think the Senator is running out of time to offload the serum. He needs the money apparently.”

“Why? He’s waited this long.”

“Don’t know. Don’t care, really. I don’t ask questions.”

She kicks me, playfully. I catch her ankle and hold it a beat longer than necessary. She tugs it back. We always seem to need to touch each other. Candles flicker, no sound except the rain and low rumble of thunder.

“Well.” I take a sip. “This is fucking awkward.”

Raine giggles, and it’s one of the sweetest sounds on earth. “What do you wanna do to pass the time?”

My eyes glaze over as I think of a few sinful things we could do to ride out this power outage, none of which involve clothes or talking.

“How about we read your journal?” Raine asks, grinning at me.

“Over my dead body.”

“I can arrange that.” Her grin becomes a full-blown smile, and while she’s beautiful when she’s scowling, her beauty is otherworldly when she’s happy.

“Okay, how’s this? You can invite three people, dead or alive, over for dinner. Who are you having?” I offer. It’s a classic icebreaker, one used many times in the military as a way to get to know new recruits.

Raine inhales and takes a small sip of her wine. “My mom. Maybe Cherry. That’s it—I hate everybody else.”

I ball my fist and thump myself in the chest, faking offense. She giggles again. Yep. It’s still the sweetest sound in the world. Maybe even sweeter the second time around.

I take a sip and casually ask. “Where is your mom?”

Raine’s expression shifts, darkness clouds her eyes, all amusement gone. “Dead.”